Installing Removable Wallpaper with Spoonflower

This post is sponsored by Spoonflower but all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’ve been slowly working to transform my guest room into a beautiful Hollywood Regency suite, imagine the Beverly Hills Hotel. You may remember my Built-in Upholstered Day bed which was the beginning of this transformation. Today I’m adding some big impact by installing Spoonflower prepasted removable wallpaper in the Banana Palm Life design. I was thrilled when Spoonflower agreed to gift me the paper needed for this project since I’ve been drooling over this particular pattern for quite some time.

About Spoonflower

If you are not familiar with Spoonflower, it’s time to get acquainted. Spoonflower is an on-demand, digital printing company that prints custom fabric, wallpaper, and other home decor products. The real game-changer is that they do not design their prints, you do! Or at least you can. The designs are created by thousands of independent artists or you can create your own custom design. There are currently over 1 million designs available which are printed to order on fabrics and papers of all different kinds. Essentially the options are endless.

The Paper

Today I’m using Spoonflower’s smooth removable wallpaper. This is durable paper with a water-activated adhesive backing. It’s long-lasting but fully removable (and recyclable.) This makes it great for someone, who makes changes often, like me. When the paper arrives it is already cut into pre-matched panels 24 inches wide and available in lengths of 1 foot, 3, 9, or 12 feet.

Prepping Walls

Before applying any wallpaper, ensure your wall is smooth, clean, and dust-free. Patch or sand any damaged areas of the wall, especially where sharp edges might pierce or tear the wallpaper. The wallpaper will work best over a solid, light-colored, painted wall. Mine was light pink so I was good to go as is.

Tools

Before getting started you’ll need to gather a few tools. Here is what I used.

• Paint Roller
• Tray or bucket of clean water (something big enought to fit roller)
• Utility knife (with plenty of blades)
• Metal straight edge or ruler
• Plastic drop cloth
• Painter’s Tape
• Long flat surface
• Damp cloth or wallpaper smoother

Prepping Paper

I prepared my paper on the floor. I started by taping a plastic drop cloth, longer than my wallpaper panels, to the floor using painter’s tape. Roll out your panel on top of the drop cloth so the floor does not get wet.

Dip your clean paint roller into the water so that is fully wet. I let the excess drip off so it was wet but not dripping excessively. Using the paint roller roll on the water to wet the entire length of the paper. On my 9 foot panels, I wet the roller twice. Once the panels ate wet you will need to book the panels. Gently fold the top and bottom, pasted sides together, to meet in the middle, as shown below. Take care not to crease the paper. Now allow each panel of paper to rest in the booking phase for at least 3-5 minutes before you hang the panel. I only wet two panels at a time since you don’t want them to dry out before hanging.

Hanging Paper

Now it’s time to hang our paper. I like to work right to left but you can work in whichever direction feels right to you. Panels will match either way. Start by picking up your first panel and unfolding just the top half of the paper, leaving the white edge with the barcode information still booked.

Since the ceiling edge may not be perfectly straight, I start with the top of the wallpaper panel about an inch above the top edge of the wall. Make sure the long edge is straight and even on the wall. Once the paper is in position, unfold the bottom half of the strip to install onto the wall. Smooth the paper downward with the damp cloth or wallpaper smoother removing air bubbles as you go.

Now for the second panel of wallpaper. Apply this one so that the new panel overlaps the edge of the previous panel by about ¾ inch. You do not need to trim overlap. I start by matching the repeat at eye level and working up and down about a foot to be sure it’s a good match before securing the whole width of the paper. Once matched smooth paper as you did before. Continue to repeat these steps, aligning each new roll over the previous one until you complete your installation.

Finishing Up

Once the paper is dry trim any excess paper with a sharp utility knife. I like to use a metal straight edge of some sort to keep from going off course. With everything complete, you can wipe down the walls with a damp sponge to remove any excess adhesive.

Now I’m just going to sit here and stare for a while. I am just loving this tropical pattern and all its beautiful colors. I feel like I’m at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Daisy does too and she knows all about luxury or at least about sleeping all day…

Big thanks to Spoonflower for making this possible!